Dogs take over Portland’s Willamette Park for Doggolympics

PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV) - Speed, power and agility — dogs of all shapes and sizes showed off Saturday at the Doggolympics.

“We’ve been looking forward something like this,” dog owner Levi Mohorich said.

Mohorich brought his four-and-a-half-year-old miniature schnauzer, Pickles, who he called his best friend. Pickles, who is known for his tricks, competed in every event, often taking the top prize — a week’s worth of Hungry Hound dog food.

“He’s a little competitive,” Mohorich said.

Oregon Rescue, Street Dog Hero, helped organize the event at Willamette Park along with Hungry Hound. After several years in Bend, the rescue’s founder, Marianne Cox, said it was time to expand to Portland.

The Doggolympics included an obstacle course, high jump, lane sprint and best trick.

“There’s just so many dog lovers in Portland and so many dogs need rescued,” Cox said. “Portland always welcomes dogs from all over. So, it just made sense.”

The event started with a 5K, which was a joint-effort with Hood to Coast that drew more than 400 people, Cox said.

“It was really nice,” participant Samantha Bowers said. “Lots of people, so I loved the turnout.”

But for Bowers, the highlight was sitting back and watching the dogs who just would not listen. It was lots of laughs and inspiration for Bowers to get her Australian shepherd, Theo, ready to compete.

“Next year, he’s gonna be in all of it,” Bowers said. “He’s gonna have medals.”